The Labor of Creativity in Images of Networking Children

Abstract

Children’s programming today reveals an alarming trend in the number of storylines involving ’tween and teenage entrepreneurs. From Disney’s songwriting duo Austin and Ally to True Jackson VP’s teen executives, these programs reflect the idealization of creative labor and naturalize the exploitation of the commons that drives biopolitical power in an increasingly immaterial global economy. These shows hyper-realize the contemporary emphasis on futurity by almost entirely doing away with childhood as child newsmakers, fashion designers, web programmers, and professional celebrities struggle each week to balance the stresses of adolescence within the framework of demanding careers. This paper will show the ways a variety of programs airing on Disney and Nickelodeon channels exemplify the conversion of social life to productive time that characterizes the late capitalist ethos and the consequent ramifications for political life, with particular attention paid to the impact of immaterial circuits of production to young women’s developing subjectivities.